All Star Weekend...Rookie/Sophomore Challenge!!!

KEVIN DURANT!!! Not to pat myself on the back, but I've been warning ya'll for a minute. KD went for 46 last night, setting the record for points scored in the rookie/sophomore game. Amare Stoudemire's 36 in the '04 game was the previous record. Durant was named MVP, while, Michael Beasley led the rookies with 29. The big homie Greg Oden sat out due to injury - shocker.

The game in pics:

(click pics to enlarge)

'09 Sophomores....

'09 Rookies...

Michael Beasley..

Derrick Rose...

Jeff Green...

Kevin Durant...

O.J. Mayo...

Kevin Durant x Russell Westbrook...

Via: sneakernews & kenlu.net

NCAA Basketball...

Fresh off a HUGE win over Marquette, #13 Villanova followed up by not showing up against West Virgina, losing to the Mountaineers 93-72. It's a terrible loss, but a trip to Morgantown to face a hungry team in need of a big win is a trap game. Let's not jump the gun and say the Wildcats are frauds, and see what they do Tuesday night against Rutgers. West Virginia just had one of those games - shot 50%, hit 9 3's, and career game from Da'sean Butler, who finished with 43 points.

#18 Butler took care of businss against UIC, winning 80-61.

Via: SI

Heads Up, Eyes Open, Fists Clinched...Black History Month AF1's

Nike Air Force 1 "Black History Month '09"...

This limited edition sneaker features a predominately black leather upper with red and green accents on the inner lining, tongue and heel. The latter area also features the centennial logo of the African American culture surrounded by 44 stars. Obviously, this sneaker contains the same colorway of the African-American flag. More red and green is seen in the form of contrast stitching seen throughout the upper. To finish it off, this sneaker is complimented with a icy, clear sole. Supposedly, this feature represents the marble courtroom floors of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the African American culture won many civil rights battles. This release is all the more interesting seeing that 2009 marks the 100th year anniversary of the NAACP’s existence.

For The Hoopers...

Tony Parker Nike Zoom Flight Club "Playoff Pack"...

These are Tony Parker's first signature shoe. Don't these remind you of the '98 Paytons? 

No release date, but Marqueesole has them.

Via: nicekicks

Album Review: Ryan Leslie

Ryan Leslie - Ryan Leslie

In the past few years, Ryan Leslie has made his mark on the music game producing and writing songs for everyone from Britney Spears to Cassie, and New Edition to Jim Jones. A Harvard graduate at age 19 with degrees in Government and Economics, Leslie - singer/songwriter/producer/musician/ - is one of the most talented cats in the game. Since 2006, Leslie's developed a huge buzz on the web via his YouTube channel, and in 2007, Leslie began recording songs for his official debut album (his first debut album, Just Right, was shelved in 2003). After two years of mild airplay with singles "Diamond Girl" and "Addiction", Leslie's self-titled debut album finally hit stores this past Tuesday, February 10. 

(click to enlarge)

Ryan Leslie is one of the best, most balanced, R&B albums in recent years. While many R&B artists have struggled, being "too hip-hop", or "too soft", Leslie finds a happy medium between the two. The singles,  "Diamond Girl", "Addiction", and "How It Was Supposed To Be" are definitely the standout tracks. They're synth-heavy cuts with a nice club bounce to satisfy those looking for a more upbeat hip-hop feel. On the other hand, for those that prefer a more traditional R&B ballad, tracks such as, "You're Fly, "Valentine", and "I-R-I-N-A" are up that alley. He's even got songs for the Pop-Crossover crowd, particularly, "Quicksand", which has a beat that could've made it on a Maroon 5 album.

Why his songs aren't all over the radio, I have no idea, especially since he's got the type of songs that rappers love to hop on, as Fabolous ("Addiction") and Jadakiss ("How It Was Supposed To Be (remix)" - not on the album), have already shown. Even Leslie occasionally starts spitting over a couple of his tracks. 

Although Leslie's not the best vocalist, his melodies, production, and ability to hit the falsetto notes are through the roof. All that makes for a great debut for Ryan Leslie, and one of the best R&B albums in a minute. As long as he keeps making music, and doesn't go back to his behind scenes work of songwriting and production, Leslie will be a mainstay on the R&B scene.

Video: "How It Was Supposed To Be"...

Slept-On Young Gun(s) Of The Week...2/6-2/13

It's all about the rookie guards this week. YG's of the week: Russell Westbrook, Derrick Rose, and Eric Gordon.

Russell Westbrook's had a nice week for the Thunder, who have gone 2-2 over the past 7 days. Russy's been filling up the stat sheet all week, averaging about 15 points, 8 boards, and 5 dimes. It's gonna be nice to see Westbrook develop over the next few years, as he may be the best all-around guard of the '08-'09 class. Those are pretty consistent with his numbers on the season, but the 8 boards is close to double his usual, 4.7.

Derrick Rose has had an outstanding week, too. Though the Bulls are just 1-2 this past week, D. Rose has been doing his thing, averaging 21 points, 6 dimes, 3 boards. The dimes and boards are what's been going on all season, but the 21 points is 5 up from his season average of 17.

Eric Gordon and the Clippers have been having a terrible season, but are 3-1 dating back to last Friday, and Gordon's been going off. In that time, he's been good for just over 20 points a night, 6 up from his season average, including 30 against NY. Even better, it's been done on 56% shooting. 

Big ups to these rooks. It should be a great Rookie/Sophomore Challenge. 

Via: ESPN

League News...Players On The Move!

Raptors Trade Jermaine O'Neal and Jamario Moon to the Heat for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks

What the trade means for the Miami Heat:

Picking up Jermaine O'Neal is a good look for Miami. They've been lacking size all season, and J.O. is a veteran PF who can contribute immediately. However, he's been extremely injury-prone, playing no more than 69 games since the '04-'05 season when he was still with the Pacers. He's missed 14 games thus far this season, but none in the past 3 and a 1/2 weeks. While he certainly doesn't make Miami a real threat to make it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals, O'Neal, good for close to 14 points, 7 boards, and 2 blocks this year, fills a huge void for the vertically-challenged Heat. Even better for the Heat, should the O'Neal experiment not work out, he'll be coming off the books after next season, just in time for the 2010 Free Agent season.

The Heat also get a young, athletic swingman in Jamario Moon, averaging 7 points, close to 5 boards, and can run the floor and jump out of the gym.

What the trade means for the Toronto Raptors:

Quite simply, the Raptors, one of this season's most disappointing teams, had to throw the towel in on the Bosh-O'Neal experiment. Picking up Shawn Marion, averaging 12 points, and almost 9 boards, is a nice move to shake things up. Most importantly, though, whether Toronto admits it or not, Marion is a great pickup for the financial benefit - they get rid of O'Neal, who's set to make $23 Million next season, in return for Marion who comes off the books at the end of this season.  

So here we go with the NBA transactions. I'm sure this is just the first of many we'll see in the next few days.

16 Naismith Hall Of Fame Finalists Named...

Michael Jordan, John Stockton, and David Robinson were among the 16 finalists for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced on Friday.

NBA coaches Don Nelson and Jerry Sloan and Rutgers women's coach C. Vivian Stringer also made the cut from a field of 164 nominees, as did former NBA stars Dennis Johnson, Chris Mullin and Bernard King, and two-time WNBA MVP Cynthia Cooper.

...Other finalists include former Golden State coach Al Attles, who was nominated as a contributor; Bob Hurley Sr., who has more than 900 wins at St. Anthony's High School in New Jersey; Vladimir Kondrashin, who coached the Soviet Union to the 1972 Olympic gold medal, defeating the U.S. in a controversial final; Pereira "Ubiratan" Maciel, a player known as "The King" in his native Brazil; Richie Guerin, a six-time NBA All-Star with the New York Knicks and a former player-coach with the St. Louis and Atlanta Haws; and Johnny "Red" Kerr, a longtime Chicago Bulls commentator who was named NBA Coach of the Year in 1967 after leading the expansion Bulls into the playoffs in their first season.

Via: ESPN

New Music...

New Young C!!!

Young Chris Feat. Joe Budden - Freestyle

"Er'thing dope in this game ain't on the radio"

Believe Dat.

Another one of Officer Ross' Deeper Than Rap...

Risk Ross - Cigar Music (I Do It)

Again, despite the beef, the lies, and any other BS, Ross has a knack for making good songs. It doesn't hurt that he's always got a nice beat to go in over...

One question, though: Did he call himself the "down south Nas"???

Erroneous! Erroneous on both counts! LMAO.

U-N-I Puts Us Up On The L.A. Shoe Game...

"No matter what the cost is, us without kicks on our feet, is Rasheed without forces"

Cam: "Juelz started drinking Sizzurp"...

Last year Cam'ron sold the rights to Juelz Santana's contract to Def Jam Records for $2 million. At the time, it seemed somewhat strange that Cam'ron would release the artist whom he discovered at fifteen and shaped into a platinum rapper. Cam'ron recently shared some of the behind the scenes details which led to the two going their separate ways.

Cam'ron told Hot 97FM's Miss Info: "The original story what happened with Juelz is that Juelz starting drinking sizzurp . . . Robitussin. He got hooked on it, addicted to it. You go to his studio, he has a, like 100 Hawaiian Punches, already pre-mixed with the stuff in it, you know what I'm sayin'?"

He added: "So, I kinda stopped speaking to him like 'Yo, we already smoke mad weed, we don't need to be on Robitussin.' I called his mother about it. I called his closest friends about it. They knew it, knew about it. They was like 'Cam, it's not that bad. It isn't like he's over doing it.' I'm like, 'Yo that's like saying he just smoke a little bit of crack. It ain't that much crack, it's just a little bit.'"

Cam'ron did have some contact with Santana after the drug issue but all ties were severed once Santana and Jim Jones appeared on stage with 50 Cent in 2007 while he was in the midst of a beef with Cam'ron.

Although I'm shocked, it's really not surprising considering how much Juelz kicks it with Weezy.

Via: nahright

Chris Brown x Rihanna Update...

Chris Brown and Rihanna seemed like the perfect couple on the outside, but after his recent arrest for felony battery, we’ve learned that it wasn’t the first time Chris raised a hand on her.

According to Police reports, Rihanna claims that Chris has hit her in the past and she referred to it as an ongoing and escalating abusive relationship.

When Rihanna first spoke to LAPD she refused to tell them what started the argument that night. We’ve now learned that it was the result of another woman sending Chris a text message about meeting up later on in the night.

During the argument, according to the police report, she ordered him to drive her home and “faked a call” to someone, saying things like, “He’s dropping me off. Make sure the cops are there,” reports TMZ. This enraged Chris.

He then said something to the effect of “You are really fu**ed up now. I’m going to kill you.” That’s when Chris allegedly began his violent attack with his fists.

At some point during the attack Rihanna took the car keys out of the ignition and threw them outside. He reportedly went outside to look for them, and returned back to the car and allegedly choked her. That’s when she lost consciousness and a witness called 911.

Based on Rihanna’s statement and her injuries Chris will definitely face a felony domestic battery charge, but it’s unclear at this time whether or not that’s the only charge he’ll get because evidence that he made criminal threats against Rihanna is kind of thin.

Damn. This story just gets more and more extreme with every update. 

Via: bossip

Music News...Rapid Fire From G-Unit...

50 & his goons have gone hard at Rick Ross over the past few days. Here's a quick rundown:

Pimpin' Curly Episode 2...

LMAO...Curtis is a fool.

Lloyd Banks Further Thrusts Himself Into The Situation With A Diss Of His Own...

Lloyd Banks - Officer Down (Rick Ross Diss)

"He bought real as a four dollar bill"

Ehhh.. It's Deso.

G-Unit - I'll Be The Shooter (Rick Ross Diss)

"It's us three against the industry, let's keep it like that"

Feeling this one. Banks went hard....That's dope how they had video game footage in there.

5o Cent - Tia Told Me (Rick Ross & DJ Khaled Diss)

"Imagine how she felt when she seen how I live, when I use a intercom to find niggas in my crib"

2 points for Fif.

50 Brings DJ Khaled's mother into the situation...

50's been hilarious thus far, but this is over the line. No moms dog, 

c'mon.

Hot 97's Miss Info got a direct response from 50 explaining why he decided to include DJ Khaled's mother, who, by all accounts, is an innocent bystander in this ongoing beef.

"Fif said that the video was his reaction to seeing a website allegedly connected to Rick Ross, which is devoted solely to attacking 50 and promoting Ross’ upcoming album 'Deeper Than Rap,'" Miss Info states. "On the site, there is a very disrespectful 'Photo-shopped' image of 50’s son, Marquise. According to 50, the site and photo has been up since Sunday."

"I think its vital for folks to understand that 50 was provoked by an attack on the most important thing to him," she continues. "He also insisted that Khaled has waged a private campaign against him for years."

And while there are still many who think the actions still didn't warrant 50 including Khaled's mother, the G-Unit boss apparently is not looking for agreement in the matter.

"How come everyone hears the shot, but nobody sees the slap that comes before the shot?" 50 asked. "You push, I punch, you stab, I shoot."

Representatives from Rick Ross' camp deny any involvement or affiliation with ThisisCurly.com, and the photo has subsequently been removed. The "A Psychic Told Me" video has also been removed from Thisis50.com.

Via: hiphopdx, nahright, & wordstarhiphop

NCAA Basketball...

A handful of games on the college hardwood Thursday night. Highlights: The Irish finally got off the schnide, snapping their 7-game losing streak by absolutely demolishing Louisville, 90-54, in South Bend. Great win for Notre Dame to show they've still got some life left. As said before the catch-22 about playing in the Big East is that yeah, you've got plenty of ranked teams to battle against, however, there are plenty of opportunities for Big wins, as well. On the other, really not sure what to make of this for Louisville. Notre Dame was desperate, at home, and the Cards were so uncompetitive that it's hard to look at this as a game to hold against them. We'll have to see how they come out Sunday vs. Providence. Luke Harongody had 32 and 17, while Kyle McAlarney scored 21 and hit 5 3's to break out of the dismal shooting slump that's plagued him over the past 5 games in which he was 17-60 from the field.

 

Damn it hurts me to say this........UCONN G Jerome Dyson is out indefinitely - and possibly the rest of the season - with a torn MCL. He suffered the injury Wednesday against Syracuse. Dyson, 6-3, was a major part of the Huskies' strong guard committee, and their second-leading scorer.  Knowing all the hard work he, and the entire program have put in, it's sad and disappointing to see something like this happen. It'll be interesting to see how UCONN bounces back from this.

Big ups to Demetri McCamey, of St. Joe's High School in Illinois, who had 21 and hit the game winner in Illinois' 60-59 win at Northwestern.

Top 25 Scores From Around The Nation...2/12/09

#6 UCLA 67, #18 Arizona St. 74

#7 Louisville 54, Notre Dame 90

#17 Utah St. 62, Idaho 53

#20 Illinois 60, Northwestern 59

#21 Gonzaga 72, St. Mary's 70

Oregon St. 60, #24 Washington 79

NBA Basketball...

Just 3 NBA games Thursday, but nothing too noteworthy. Highlights: Dirk had 37, but Paul Pierce had 31, including 18 in the second half, to lead Boston to the W. Rajon Rondo had a triple- double - 19 points, 15 boards, 14 assists. The game also included Techs for both Dirk and KG, and a Doc Rivers ejection....Congrats to Thabo Sefolosha, who was posterized by Shaw Marion for game. LMAO!!!

BROKE ANKLES!!!

Chris Paul returned to action Wednesday night after missing the past four games with a groin injury. Eddie House was made well aware of CP3's return...

WOW.

Elgin Baylor Suing L.A. Clippers

Elgin Baylor, the former  Los Angeles Clippers general manager who left the team last fall after 22 years, has sued the franchise, the NBA and team owner Donald Sterling alleging employment discrimination.

Baylor's attorney, Carl Douglas, said the lawsuit was filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Baylor plans to hold a news conference Thursday to discuss the lawsuit, which also names club president Andy Roeser, Douglas said in a fax sent Wednesday.

The lawsuit maintains that Baylor was "discriminated against and unceremoniously released from his position with the team on account of his age and his race" and that he was "grossly underpaid during his tenure with the Clippers, never earning more than $350,000 per year, when compared with the compensation scheme for general managers employed by every other team in the NBA."

Full story here.

Scores From Around The Nation...2/12/09

Heat 95, Bulls 93

Celtics 99, Mavs 92

Blazers 98, Warriors 105

Via: ESPN

CP3.II Quickstrikes & Something For The NikeHeads...

Air Jordan CP3.II Quickstrike...

Peep The Detail On These...

Chris Paul’s second signature shoe from Jordan Brand, the Air Jordan CP3.II, will be released at select Jordan Brand retailers any day now and now a Quickstrike colorway of the shoe has been released. This CP3.II is inspired by the city of New Orleans and it’s culture as well as Paul himself and some of his achievements over the years. The shoe takes direct inspiration from New Orleans Creole history with some of the graphics on the shoe’s heel and outsole. There is a “61″ on the heel of the shoe, which is the number of points Paul scored in a game following the death of his grandfather who passed away at 61 years of age. On the shoe’s tongue you’ll find CP3’s Jordan Brand logo. Pick these up now at select Jordan Brand retailers as well as the Kix-Files Online Store.

I can't say I'm a fan of the CP3.II just yet, but the detail alone sells is enough these. Sick.

Fresh Forces...

Nike AIr Force 1 Premium - Black/Varsity Red...

 

Release Date: Summer 2009

Nike Air Hoop Structure..

Black/Infared...

White/Aquamarie/Black Toe...

Release Date: Fall 2009

Nike x "White Men Can't Jump", cont'd...

Nike Hyperlite "White Men Can't Jump"...

By now, you’ve probably already seen the White Men Can’t Jump Air Flight Lite High from the recent Media Pack, but it appears that Nike isn’t done paying homage to the classic b-ball flick. Nike went a different route this time, using the yet to be released Nike Hyperlite to further immortalize the baddest 2 man squad since King and Duck. The upper is a fairly simple white, but there are some bright accent colors that may have been seen on one of Sidney Deane’s flipped brim bicycling hats or Billy Hoyle’s notorious pumpable Nike Air Command Forces.

Speaking of gear worn by Woody Harrelson in White Men Can’t Jump, this Hyperlite goes a step further in its tribute than the Flight Lite did by adding a very special tongue label. Reinterpreting the “Parental Advisory” logo that appeared on Woody’s t-shirt in the movie, the tag on the tongue features his famous line, “I’M IN THE &*#@ING ZONE!” Stay tuned for release info so you too can get “in the zone.” Much thanks to J. Gibson for the photos.

Pick your jaw up. 

Release Date: Fall 2009

Blazers...

Nike Blazer High Premium Selvage Denim...

Release Date: Fall 2009

Via: sneakernews